


When Padfoot Met Moony

by WolfstarGarden



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: AU, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Blow Jobs, Feels, Flirting, Fluff, Friends to Lovers, Friendship, Getting Together, Happy Ending, Humor, Light-Hearted, M/M, No Angst, Romance, Romantic Comedy, Self-Indulgent, Smut
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-13
Updated: 2019-02-13
Packaged: 2019-10-27 12:30:43
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,379
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17766818
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WolfstarGarden/pseuds/WolfstarGarden
Summary: Remus doesn't much care for meeting new people. And he does not want Sirius to change his mind.





	When Padfoot Met Moony

**Author's Note:**

> Here's a thing I wrote I dunno when. Months ago. Just some lazy, self-indulgent rom-com AU nonsense.

“Hey, it’s you!”

Concentrating on _Comparative Studies in Society and History_ , it was some time before Remus realised he was being spoken to. He’d long since learned to block out the distractions of public transport.

“Oy, Cambridge Press – hello!”

Frowning his annoyance, Remus glared over the top of his journal and surprised a familiar stranger.

Beaming at him, the stranger settled in the opposite seat. “It is you! I knew it. Remus, right?”

“Yeah,” Remus said, holding his page. “How’ve you been..?” He fished for a name, but it didn’t come to him.

“You’ve forgotten my name again.” He was graced with a brilliant grin. “That’s hilarious. It’s Sirius.”

 _Of course it is, how could I have forgotten that again?_ “Well,” Remus said. “It was a couple of years ago; I think that’s a good enough excuse.”

“No it’s not,” Sirius said, raising booted feet and crossing them on the seat beside Remus. “I’m unforgettable.”

That at least was true – Remus certainly hadn’t forgotten the first time they met. At the time he had been dating Sirius’ cousin, and at the only family event Remus attended a half-drunken Sirius had thrown an arm around him and started raving about how it was impossible to find a decent man. Not two years later they’d bumped into each other at another party, that time hosted by a friend of Remus’ who had briefly dated Sirius.

But Remus was better with faces than names. Sirius’ face at least was difficult to forget.

“So, what’s been happening with you then?”

Remus frowned lightly. All he really remembered of Sirius was a high level of arrogance and an even higher level of annoyance. “Look, I don’t want to be rude,” Remus lied. “But I’m actually quite busy with this article, so...”

“Of course.” Sirius’ voice was pure, smooth politeness. He slouched down in his seat, stretching his legs out further. “So it’s in your best interests not to stall while answering me, wouldn’t you agree?”

Remus threw him a flat, unimpressed look which Sirius met with expectant challenge.

“Let me rephrase.” Irritated, Remus deliberately made his voice very pleasant. “It’s lovely to see you, do fuck off.”

Sirius flicked his eyebrows as a grin slid very slowly across his mouth. He wriggled against his seat. “Why, thank you Remus. I’d be delighted to join you to your stop. No need to be hostile.”

“Oh, I’m nowhere near hostile yet. Thanks for stopping, Sirius.” With a polite, smiling nod, Remus pointedly raised his journal. “I’m sure I’ll see you in a couple of years.”

Sirius skittered along the seat towards him; his boot nudged Remus’ thigh.

A muscle twitched in Remus’ jaw. He sat steadfast, trying to absorb the words blurring across his page. Then Sirius murmured, “ _The more you ignore me, the closer I get._ ” A finger hooked over the edge of Remus’ journal, pulling it back. “See, I remember. _Let me in_.”

Aggravated, Remus smacked the magazine into his lap and glared at Sirius. Remembering his musical preferences was hardly impressive. “Is there a reason you’re imposing on me?”

Eyeing him, Sirius gave a lazy shrug. “I have long commute. I just thought it would be nice to talk to someone. Gotta be honest, you’re not giving me much to work with here.”

“That’s because there are only two reasons people talk to strangers, Sirius.”

“We aren’t strangers,” Sirius interrupted, his tone filled with mischief. “But I’m interested, so please continue.”

Glaring, Remus kept his voice dismissive; he refused to engage with some bored pretty boy who flashed across the journey of his life like a cheap postcard. “It’s either because they’re attempting to ingratiate in order to get something. Or because they’re hoping the other person will have sex with them.”

Sirius’ responding smile was slow and infuriating, glimmering with soft amusement. “You either have a very high opinion of yourself or a very low opinion of other people. You know there’s also _friendship_ , right? Maybe I’m talking to you, Remus, because I’d like to be your friend.”

“I have enough friends,” Remus snapped. He was annoyed that the reply impressed him; no way was he going to allow it to stimulate a conversation. Remus did not want to rehash boring pastimes and memories of less than pleasant un-sober nights... No, what he wanted was to finish reading his article so he could get home, put his feet up on the couch and maybe have a wank over a handsome someone who would definitely _not_ be Sirius.

That was how it was going to be. Remus was determined.

Sirius nudged him again. “You can never have enough friends, Remus. Not if they’re as excellent as I am.”

Flipping his journal back open, Remus arched a derisive eyebrow and did not reply.

When he finally got off the train, he could not believe that he’d given Sirius his number.

l-l

“Do you see this? This – what you’re doing? _This is annoying to me_.” Remus folded his arms and put his feet up on the train seat, knowing it was not enough to block Sirius.

Beaming, Sirius looped one lean leg over Remus’ and threw himself down. Giving Remus’ shoes a welcoming pat, he said, “Oh come on. I’m far more interesting than your reports.”

There was no way Remus was going to agree with that. “Transit time is wasted time if I’m not able to work. Because of _you_ I have to read my journals in the evening, when I could be relaxing.”

“Do you think about me when you relax?” Sirius asked, his grinning eyes bright and intense. “All the funny things I say to you? How you’d like to have sex with me? Anything like that?”

“Certainly not,” Remus lied, almost convincing himself.

Sirius’ expression fell slightly. “Too bad. I guess the fantasies will stay one-sided then.”

“I thought you only wanted to be my friend?” Remus rejoined.

Leaning towards him, Sirius said, “And I thought you wanted to read your Cambridge Press, but here you are ... talking to me. So you’re a liar and I bet you _do_ fantasise about me.”

“Why are we having this conversation?” Remus asked in false exasperation. He was loathe to admit it, but he enjoyed spending his evening commute with Sirius. What had started as a couple of random meetings quickly became a very regular thing once they realised they always took the same train home. “Why are we ever having _any_ conversation?”

“It’s like you don’t want me around. You’re going to give me a complex,” Sirius said, stretching out and pulling his phone from his pocket.

“You already have one,” Remus said. “It’s called narcissism.”

Sirius smirked and flicked an eyebrow without looking up. “So, Moony ... had a rough day, huh?”

With a warm sigh, Remus murmured, “Obvious is it?”

“A bit. Wanna talk about it?”

“Not especially.”

“Wanna come back to my place and forget about it over drinks?”

Remus started. “Really?”

Slipping his phone away, Sirius laughed. “Sure. We talk almost every day. I like you. I’m not afraid of letting you into my house, you silly berk.”

l-l

“Are you _calling_ me?” Sirius’ snuffly voice echoed down the line, clearly astonished.

“Well...” Remus stalled, collapsing on his couch and thumping his satchel on the floor. “I thought I’d check on you. You’ve been missing and all.”

“It’s just ‘flu, Remus. I think it’s more that you’ve missed me.”

Sucking a deep breath in, Remus said, “Maybe I have.”

“You’re too sweet,” Sirius responded. There was a pause. “You could’ve texted me, you know.”

“So impersonal,” Remus dismissed. Then he frowned. “No one has ever accused me of being _sweet_ before.”

“So I’m your first, huh? How exciting.”

“My first was definitely not exciting. Disappointing and underwhelming is a better description,” Remus said as stretched across the couch and lay back. “So very like you, yes.”

Sirius made a sound that probably started as a snort of derisive laughter but deteriorated almost instantly into a squelchy, mucous-ridden choke.

“Have I ever mentioned how attractive I find you?” Remus teased.

Hacking a cough, Sirius muttered, “Don’t say things like that unless you’re actually going to come over here and let me give you the ‘flu.”

It bothered Remus that the idea was actually tempting.

l-l

“D’you know who’d like you?” Sirius smiled.

“Nobody,” Remus replied, folding his magazine. He made space for Sirius as the train rumbled forwards. “I am distinctly unlikeable and you are delusional for thinking otherwise.”

“My brother,” Sirius said, ignoring him. He pushed a cup of takeaway coffee into Remus’ hand. “He’s got this same boring type of condescension that you claim as humour.”

“Is that so,” Remus murmured. “Are you going somewhere with this?”

“Yeah, let me set you up.”

“What? _No_.” Awkwardly, Remus crossed his arms and glared.

“Yes,” Sirius said with equal stubbornness. “Come on, I wouldn’t try and set you up with just anyone. And you’re going to meet my brother anyway, so why not over a nice fancy dinner?”

Remus eyed him uncertainly. “I don’t like fancy dinners. And I don’t like people. Why won’t you leave me alone?”

“Because you don’t want me to,” Sirius said, shifting his feet onto Remus’ lap. “Just think about it?”

Remus hadn’t intended to think about it at all. But there was one thing that incentivised him to finally accept Sirius’ invitation: he wanted distraction from the odd sexual tension that seemed to brew increasingly hotter between Sirius and himself. He was rather fond of his friendship with Sirius, something that had bloomed spontaneous and solid. But he also kinda sorta wanted to strip Sirius down to his skin and explore his nakedness.

He just needed to get laid, Remus decided. That would expel what was clearly only a misdirected sexual need.

Having Sirius unavailable might help as well, so Remus agreed to meet Regulus only on the proviso that they made it a double date.

“You’ll like James,” Remus said when he joined Sirius at the restaurant bar. “He’s annoying and egotistical too.”

“So you have a type,” Sirius said, pulling him into a welcoming hug. “And while he may have a sparkling personality the real question is, is he _sexy_?”

“He certainly thinks so.” Remus shrugged.

“And what’s your opinion?” Sirius asked, a cheeky glint in his eyes as he waved for the bartender and ordered Remus a drink.

“I have no opinions about the sexual appeal of my friends.”

Sirius laughed. “So I’ve got you at a crossroads. If you don’t answer then you’re finally admitting we’re friends ... and if you _do,_ then what a boost for my flailing confidence. Well my dear Remus – do you think I’m sexy?”

Arching an eyebrow, Remus smoothly said, “No.”

Their drinks arrived as Sirius scowled at him. He bumped Remus’ knee with his own. “Too bad. I was going to offer to throw you one if you don’t hit it off with Regulus.”

“Too bad,” Remus echoed, reaching for his glass and hiding a smile behind it.

“You can’t fool me,” Sirius said, swinging an arm around his waist. “You want this body so badly. It’s fine, I’ll let you.”

“Well, if you _do_ hit it off with James he’ll tell me every unsavoury detail. So you’ll forgive me for not indulging your sex drive.”

Sirius’ lips formed an answer he never gave because James arrived, bounding towards them with a joyful smile. “Moony, my love! Is this the gorgeous beast you’re hoping I’ll take off your hands, then?”

“Hullo Prongs,” Remus said, rolling his eyes even as a welcoming grin broke across his face. He made a perfunctory introduction.

“Charmed,” Sirius said. “So, you told him I’m gorgeous, huh?”

“I told him you’re a beast.”

“And it’s absolutely true,” another voice interjected. Like a shadow, Regulus’ lithe figure slid amongst them. “Hello brother.”

More introductions were made, vague comments about distant recognition followed by stilted small talk, before Remus said, “Shall we get seated then?”

“Go ahead,” James said. “We’ll get drinks and join you.”

Sirius looped his arm through Remus’ as they wound across the dining room behind their server. Throwing a considering glance over his shoulder, Remus tipped his mouth against Sirius’ ear. “I think we miscalculated,” he whispered.

Sirius stopped and turned around, following his gaze. There was no doubt that James and Regulus were eyeing each other up. “Ah. Well, looks like you’ll be coming to me for sexual favours yet.”

l-l

“It’s official,” Sirius said when Remus answered the phone. “They’ve shacked up together.”

“They were absolutely disgraceful at dinner,” Remus sighed. “And James moves fast.”

“So does Reg, apparently,” Sirius said, almost sounding amused.

“Well, I’m sorry,” Remus said, hitting his speaker button as he rambled about the kitchen. “But if they make a proper go of it you’ll get a good mate out of James. The carry on between you two ... I almost regret introducing you.”

“Rubbish,” Sirius said. “It’s always good to have a partner in crime. And I was right – my brother did like you. Unfortunately just not as well as he liked James.”

“An outcome I’m well used to,” Remus agreed.

“Don’t worry, I still prefer you,” Sirius said. “But you’re my best friend, so I guess I’m contractually obligated.”

Remus dropped the carrots he was about to peel, blindly watching them bounce and roll across the floor. Clearing his throat, he tried to force a neutral tone. “I’m your best friend? When did that happen?”

“I don’t know,” Sirius said with a plain sincerity. “But you are. And I’m going to assume the feeling is mutual.”

“James would kill me if I admitted it,” Remus said, letting an unexpected pleasure enter his voice.

After the slightest pause, Sirius’ happy voice said, “I knew it.”

l-l

Apparently being single was not an excuse for avoiding further double dates with James and Regulus, and they occurred with an alarming frequency.

At the end of one draining week, James dragged Remus out of the house and into a club. It was very pleasant and inevitably Regulus arrived with Sirius in tow. There were many drinks before they headed for the dance floor. Sirius swooped into Remus’ waiting arms.

“We’ve lost them for the night,” Sirius said, shaking his hair towards James and Regulus. He sounded far from sober.

“Too bad,” Remus said, quite tipsy himself. “James was my wingman.”

“Oh.” Sirius’ tone was unreadable. “Are you on the pull tonight, then?”

Sighing, Remus replied, “Not anymore, I suppose.”

 “Well,” Sirius said, sliding against him. “You’re welcome to come home with me. I’m a sure thing.”

“You make a lot of those jokes,” Remus murmured, swaying against him. “Sex destroys friendships, Sirius.”

Sirius was silent for a long time, hands warm against Remus’ body. “I suppose it does at that,” he finally said, voice neutral.

“This isn’t _When Harry Met Sally_ ,” Remus insisted.

“Is it not?”

“It is not.”

A light tease entered Sirius’ voice. “What if I were to fake a spontaneous orgasm?”

“That would doubtless be embarrassing.”

Sirius chuckled, slowly drifting a hand across Remus’ back. A long moment of pleasant silence passed, then he asked in an abrupt, cheeky voice, “What was your best ever orgasm?”

Remus choked, fingers flexing brutally against Sirius’ hips. “Why the fuck would you ask me that?” he cried. “Do we not have boundaries anymore?”

“I don’t think we ever did,” Sirius murmured.

There was something in his tone that Remus refused to acknowledge. Something that told him he should step back and ease Sirius away. He should insist on going home. But Remus did nothing.

Sirius’ head dropped into the curve of his shoulder, face hidden. “I must be too drunk,” he mumbled.

“Must be,” Remus agreed softly. Instead of being sensible, his arms curved tight around Sirius’ firm warmth. “Me too.”

l-l

“Something’s wrong,” Sirius’ frown was audible. “I can hear it in your voice.”

“I’m fine,” Remus lied.

“No, c’mon – tell me. You’ll feel better.”

“I won’t,” Remus said with pure petulance. He stared at the ceiling, soft background music willing his brain into numbness.

“Well, what are you doing to help yourself then?”

“Shower, intoxication, contemplating self-harm...”

“I’m on my way over,” Sirius said, very firm. “I’ll see you in thirty.”

Half an hour later Sirius arrived bearing comfort food and wine. Letting himself in, he flung himself down beside Remus and grabbed his hand. After pressing a kiss to his knuckles Sirius wound their fingers together and said, “Talk to me. Let it out.”

Remus snorted. “I might never get it back in.” He sighed and began to share anyway. “There was, ah ... a work incident today. But it’s stupid, I shouldn’t be this upset.”

“Okay, here’s what we’re going to do,” Sirius said. “First, I’m turning off whatever the fuck this depressing music is that you’re listening to. Then we’re going to have this entire bottle of wine, so I get you drunk enough to talk to me without feeling embarrassed about having natural human emotions. Deal?”

Despite himself, Remus smiled. “Do I have a choice?”

Shortly afterwards he was settled on the couch with an excess of alcohol and Sirius’ fingers twisting a soothing press across his neck. “So what happened?”

Halting at first, Remus explained the altercation and the reprimand it had earned him. By the time Sirius refilled his glass the crushing, righteous anger gripping his chest burst outwards. “The guy just wouldn’t _stop_ , Sirius! Like, not everyone is going to agree with my articles, but it _is_ peer reviewed and this guy – who _is_ this guy?”

“Not someone you should get upset over, Remus.”

“But then he got really personal, Sirius ... he said things – well, nothing I want you to hear actually.” His rage bubbled away, leaving behind a hollow vulnerability. Remus glanced at Sirius with nervous eyes.

“Hey, come here.” Sirius slid his hand in Remus’ hair. “We both know that you’re a good guy. Fuck anyone who says otherwise.” He pressed a kiss to Remus’ cheek and didn’t move away, nudging their faces together.

Motivated by a painful need for reassurance, Remus turned towards him. Then he slid his mouth over Sirius’ and kissed him.

Sirius kissed him in return.

Thankful, Remus clung to Sirius’ offer of support and poured his need for soothing into it. He pulled away with closed eyes and a grateful sigh, Sirius’ secure warmth pressed against him.

Then forceful lips met his again, taking Remus by complete surprise.

Sirius rushed against him with a surging a violent passion, dragging their bodies closer. Shutting off the fractional part of his brain that wanted to stop, that said this was not supposed to happen, that it was a _bad idea_ , Remus met his vigour with hunger.

Sirius left him breathless.

He kissed Remus with finesse, luring him into a heady slide of lips and tongues that took and took and _took_. It left Remus strangely empty and light, carefree and so willing ... and then Sirius’ hands curled around his head, holding him close and hard as he began to fill Remus up again. Slow and deep, Sirius’ kiss offered him so much more than simple comfort.

Pure burning need drenched Remus’ veins, settling with interest between his legs. He pulled back reluctantly.

Sirius’ mouth slid rough across Remus’ cheek. “Remus,” he whispered, sliding one hand from Remus’ hair and skimming it over his hip. “Let me take your mind off it. Let me show you how wonderful you are.”

“Wh-what?” Remus gasped, not daring to hope.

“You know what,” Sirius said, his voice a needy thread. “Will you? With me?”

Pressing his nose into Sirius’ hair, Remus whispered, “ _Yes_.”

Gently, Sirius tugged his head back and sucked a bruising kiss against Remus’ neck before pulling him out of his pyjama top. Then he kissed Remus again, sweet and tender and lingering with gentle, arousing affection, sliding consuming hands over his skin. There was more to the touch than a need to distract, Remus could feel it; Sirius was exploring him, mapping his body, charting his reactions.

Remus arched towards him. His fingers trailed down Sirius’ chest, snagging buttons and popping them open. He pressed his hands to Sirius’ warm, welcoming skin, delighting in the flex of surprised muscles quivering against his fingertips. Remus pulled Sirius against him, bare chests pressing together.

“ _Ohh_ , Remus...” Sirius breathed. His hand skittered slow across Remus’ thigh then pressed curiously against his cock; Remus hissed a breath through his teeth as Sirius mumbled an astonished, “ _Wow_. You’re so hard ... I didn’t imagine...”

He cut himself off but Remus barely noticed; he knocked his hips towards Sirius’ palm, pressing lovely friction where he needed it. Fingers curling through the fabric, Sirius’ squeezed his cock and Remus heard himself make some sort of embarrassing, gasping moan. His eyes flickered open to see Sirius staring at him, enraptured.

Together, they pulled the last of their clothes away and Sirius resumed his devouring feast, drawing out a promise of pleasure that drove a needy madness across Remus’ nerves. He arched his hips towards Sirius’, a low keen echoing in his throat as their cocks finally made contact, bumping together in a pulse of sharp heat. “God, Sirius...”

Biting a kiss against his shoulder, Sirius muttered, “Are you still thinking?”

Shaking his head, Remus gripped Sirius tight and hooked a leg around his thigh, yanking him down. He rutted against him, pure need driving him in frantic, sharp thrusts that had Sirius clinging to him, his selfless focus finally drifting into sensation. He mumbled garbled, idolatrous words that drifted through Remus’ ears without being heard.

Slowing, Remus rolled his hips hard against Sirius, groaning as their cocks slid together. His hands scrabbled across Sirius, unable to decide where he wanted to touch – shoulder blades and bare skin and long, soft hair.

“Remus,” Sirius’ voice cracked. He thrust his hips aimlessly. “Remus, I want more. I want to taste you, I want to get you off.”

Lust shot down Remus’ spine in white flames. On a shaking breath, he said, “Well, luckily there’s a method for managing both.”

Sirius whispered a laugh and slipped to the floor, pulling Remus towards him. He pressed soft lips to the inside of Remus’ thigh. “You just sit there and let me take care of you.”

Sirius teased him with a driving need, pressing random touches across his body. His hair drifted over Remus’ leg; he tangled a hand through it and Sirius huffed, fingers flexing with approval. Breath ghosting across Remus’ skin, he muttered, “Pull...” Swallowing, Remus gave an experimental tug. Sirius sighed pleasantly then nudged towards his fingers. “ _Hard_.”

Gazing at him, Remus tightened his fingers in a sharp yank. Sucking in a happy breath, Sirius’ eyes drifted shut and a grating moan echoed low in his throat. His tongue slipped adoringly against Remus’ thigh, followed with soft, indulgent kisses.

Remus couldn’t look away. The soft bliss easing across Sirius’ face sent fireflies fluttering through his belly, warm and desperate. He drew Sirius’ head back and their eyes met. Electric need arced between then.

Then Sirius pulled against Remus’ grip and slid his mouth around the head of Remus’ cock in a rush of wet warmth

“Oh... _fuck_.”

Sirius hummed agreement, shooting a vibrating delight through Remus’ body. He twisted Sirius’ hair between his fingers and lost himself in the perfection of Sirius’ worshipful mouth. And it _was_ worship. It was so much more than a semi-drunken impulse, or a simple urge to get off. Sirius touched him in a way Remus had never quite known before – purposeful, intense, hungry.

There was no rushing. Sirius was good, dragging pleasure from Remus’ very core, drowning out everything that wasn’t comprised of _sex_ and _Sirius_. Barely seeing, Remus stared at Sirius, at the slide of his lips creeping along his cock, the soft beckoning curl of his tongue, the sweet enjoyment in his expression.

Needing more – anything, everything – Remus urged Sirius closer, pulling his hair with shaking, ungentle fingers. Sirius gave a blissful whine; it trembled through Remus’ cock and settled in his belly, a fiery twist that pulled too tight too soon.

“Ohh, Sirius...” Remus wanted to make it _last_ , but the alcohol and the way Sirius was working him over were not a helpful combination. For a moment he was brutally torn between chasing release and making Sirius slow down in case it was the only opportunity he ever got. “Sirius, I...”

A strangled, almost excited sound of encouragement echoed in Sirius’ throat, his hands tightening on Remus. The decision was made for him in that instant.

Sirius dragged him over the edge with the wet pull of his tongue, fingers biting bruises into Remus’ skin. He twisted a fist through Sirius’ hair and came hard over his tongue, a silent cry scraping up his throat.

Gently licking him through the come down, Sirius pulled back and buried his face against Remus’ thigh, nuzzling him with a tipsy contentment. He swallowed and lazily mouthed Remus’ skin, mumbling adoring words that Remus couldn’t make out.

Slowly pulling his shattered breath back together, Remus rubbed careful, soothing circles across Sirius’ scalp.

“Better?” Sirius mumbled. He coughed and tried again. “Feel better, Moony?”

“Mm. Yeah,” Remus raked Sirius’ hair back. “Thank you. What about you? D’you want me to-”

“Don’t worry about me,” Sirius demurred, shifting not entirely comfortably. The heat of his skin told Remus well enough what his blood was doing.

“Come on,” Remus said, trying to stand – but instead, he fell to the floor beside Sirius, their naked limbs tangling together. Sirius made a vague squawk of pain as Remus laughed. “Come to bed, Padfoot.”

l-l

Remus woke up with a cracking hangover and an arm draped across his hip. A blind panic swamped the slow dawning of waking irritation.

“Oh my god...” he whispered. Fragmented memories danced before his eyes – dragging Sirius to his bedroom, stretching him across the sheets ... long, starving kisses ... hands _everywhere_ , sweat-drenched skin on smooth, soft skin ... Sirius’ legs wrapped around his shoulders ... and the way Sirius looked at him.

Oh god, the way Sirius _looked at him_.

Remus had made a terrible mistake.

Appalled, horrified, he shifted but Sirius stirred as he eased away. His fingers dipped a careful press against Remus’ thigh. “Hey.”

“Uhm,” Remus cleared his throat. “Hi. Are you – how’re you?”

“Heaven and hell,” Sirius mumbled. Remus refused to acknowledge his tone. “Are you getting up?”

“Yeah. D’you want some water or something?”

“That’d be great,” Sirius said.

Remus slithered from the bed and into a robe before hurtling towards the Sirius-free sanctity of his kitchen.

He leaned on the counter, brain thumping against the inside of his skull. They’d slept together. Remus didn’t know what to do or what it meant – or where it was going to lead. His hangover refused to focus on it all. Still, Remus knew there was going to be an uncomfortable conversation whatever the case.

Resolved, he turned to get water – and saw the time on his microwave clock. “Oh, _fuck_!” Remus rushed back to the bedroom and threw his robe off. He snatched for random clothes.

“What is it?” Sirius said, clambering out from under the tangle of bed sheets. “What’re you doing?”

“I’m late,” Remus yelped. “I’m so fucking late and I have damage control to do at work as it is, I’m gonna be _fucked_.”

“Right.” Sirius bit his lip and hesitated, looking uncharacteristically lost.

“Look, stay here, it’s fine,” Remus said, glancing around and trying not to stumble as his brain surged sideways in protest. “I just ... I’ll call you later, okay?”

“Moony.”

“I have to go, Sirius, I really do have to leave.”

Sirius took a deep breath and stepped closer. Hesitant but determined, he hooked an arm around Remus’ shoulders and kissed him. It was caring and sweet and giving ... something soft that Remus felt he did not rightly deserve.

He eased away. “I’ll see you on the train tonight?”

“Sure,” Sirius muttered. His eyes were dark. Remus turned away from them and raced from the house.

Ten minutes later Remus was on the train. He called James, who answered the phone sounding like he’d just woken up. “Alright, Moony? What’s up?”

Remus sucked in a nervous breath. “Prongs. I ... I slept with Sirius last night.”

“Oh cool,” James yawned. “About time.”

Remus actually took the phone away from his ear and glared at the blank screen in surprise. “What the hell do you mean ‘about time’?”

“Well, Moony. I hate to be the one to tell you this, but it’s kinda obvious that you two are stupidly in love with each other. Oh, hello – Reggie just got a text from Sirius.”

“Oh christ,” Remus moaned, sagging back in his seat. “Fuck, Prongs, this isn’t...”

“Yeah, you’re right.” James’ tone was the distracted sound of someone reading a text. “Did you really just race out of there? That was a jerk move.”

“Prongs, I’m going to lose my job! I had to leave.”

“Oh rubbish,” James said, but he sounded a little less sure of himself. “Well, you’re clearly freaking out about Sirius, so let’s have it.”

Groaning, Remus pressed a hand over his burning eyes. “We were drunk, it wasn’t supposed to happen. I mean, it wasn’t planned.”

“Hm, well ... according to Sirius’ texts, it was excellent until you went mental this morning.”

“Don’t fuck with me James!” Remus’ voice was sharp; people near him glanced around.

“I’m not fucking with you,” James said and his voice was a little gentler. “That is exactly what he’s texted to Reggie. Apparently he’s worried that the – and I’m quoting – massive amounts of wine might have had more to do with it than you did. Sounds to me, mate, like he thinks you regret it.”

Remus said nothing. A long silence stretched over the line, punctuated only by the rolling clunk of the train.

“ _Do_ you?” James asked eventually, sounding slightly alarmed. “Moony?”

Remus rubbed a hand over his mouth. “I don’t know.”

“I need more information than that, Remus,” James said, suddenly brusque and impatient.

By the time Remus explained the drifting attraction that had long permeated his friendship with Sirius and all the circumstances of the previous night, James actually sounded something akin to gleeful.

“You’ve got a perfect boyfriend ready and waiting Moony! Get your head out of your arse and sort it out.”

l-l

Remus wove through his day in a mire of distraction. His tardiness was dismissed as an emotional reaction to the drama of the day before, and he was assured in a follow-up meeting that his reprimand was for appearances only and not on his record.

The politics of it pissed him off, but Remus let it slide. His brain was grateful to have one less thing to worry about. Instead, he hunched over his desk staring into a glass of Berocca and called Sirius.

“Hey,” Sirius’ voice echoed over the line sounding strangely subdued. “Alright?”

“Um. Yeah, fine,” Remus said, a little bemused. “So, I think things are settled here... Look, do we need to talk about what happened last night?”

There was a long pause. Remus could almost hear the whir of Sirius’ mind-cogs. Finally he muttered, “Only if we’re not on the same page.”

Immediately frustrated, Remus pressed his fingertips against his eyes. He had no idea what page Sirius was on. “Well. I mean, it was great, really great. You were excellent.”

“I hear a ‘but’ coming,” Sirius said, and his voice was suddenly stronger but also far less engaged. “Look, don’t even worry about it. We got a bit too drunk and far too carried away. The way you were this morning kinda told me where you’re at.”

“Sirius-”

“Hey, I gotta go.”

Sirius didn’t even wait for Remus to say a farewell before he rung off.

l-l

Things had somehow become very bad. Sirius did not meet Remus on the train that night. He did not answer his phone when Remus tried to call again. Remus got home to a house scattered with reminders of their night together.

He went to bed early without changing the sheets. Feeling strangely empty, he pressed his face into Sirius’ scent lingering on his pillow and greeted the peaceful oblivion of sleep.

He couldn’t get in touch with Sirius at all over the next few days. His absence was obvious and painful.

When Sirius refused to take his calls or answer his texts or join him on the train for the entire next week as well Remus became very angry.

There was only one thing for it. Instead of taking a seat in his usual carriage on the evening train, Remus stormed his way along the train and finally spotted Sirius bowed over his phone, expression hidden.

There was a young woman sitting next to him, eyeing him hopefully and clearly trying to decide how best to strike up a conversation.

Remus threw himself into the seat facing them. “Move,” he snapped, glaring at the women. She looked about to retort but wilted under his glare and scampered away. Remus threw his feet onto her seat as Sirius looked up.

His face was set in a guarded sneer. “This, what you’re doing?” he mimicked unkindly. “You’re annoying me.”

“Well, you’re annoying me too, you twat,” Remus replied. “Why the fuck are you ghosting on me?”

Sirius stared at him with eyes made of fire. The silence that settled between them ached with his haughty resentment. Finally, he snarled, “You freaked and ran out on me.”

“It wasn’t like that!” Remus was about to argue, but with Sirius there really was no point bothering. Taking a slow, steadying breath in, Remus made his tone soft and tried a different tactic. “You’re my best friend, Sirius.”

Ripping his gaze back to his phone, Sirius hid behind the dark curtain of his hair. “Sex destroys friendships, remember?”

Having his own words thrown back at him stung. A soft sadness trembled through Remus. “And that’s the end of it, is it?”

Sirius shrugged.

Forcing a heavy, painful breath through his nose, Remus fought down the twist of emotions surging through his chest. He swallowed a couple of times, trying to force away the sudden tight swelling in his throat. It didn’t work. “Well,” he said in a strangled voice. “If ... if you don’t want to give us a go and you don’t want to stay friends, then... I guess that’s it. At least I get the small comfort of being right.”

Remus slipped to his feet and melted past the seats back towards his usual compartment, ignoring Sirius’ suddenly restless voice hollering after him.

Finding an empty seat, Remus slid into it and rested his head against the window, letting the hard vibration rattle his brain to distraction. He was not going to think about it on the train. He was determined to hold things together until he made it home. It worked for all of one minute and then a body thudded down beside him.

“You don’t get to take off on me again, you utter jerk,” Sirius snapped. Remus rolled his eyes without opening them, snidely treating Sirius to a taste of his own disengagement. “What d’you mean, you were right?”

Remus sniffed. “People only want one of two things – ingratiation or sex. See how quickly friendship became irrelevant once we fucked each other.”

There was a pause before Sirius said in a gruff tone, “I don’t want to stop being friends, Remus. It’s not that at all. I just ... I just couldn’t face you turning me down.”

“I actually wasn’t going to,” Remus muttered.

“Oh.” Quiet horror bled into Sirius’ tone – but it was laced with something smug and triumphant as well. “Right ... well then, I have acted like a bit of a twat, haven’t I?”

Remus snorted. He was not going to allow any affection in. Kindness would creak open the gate to both hope and confusion, and both were too difficult to face during a commute.

“Moony...”

Remus rubbed a hand over his face and reluctantly rolled his head towards Sirius, noting the usual teasing cheer gleaming in his eyes again. Remus resisted it. Arching an eyebrow, he hit Sirius with an expectant gaze. “What?”

“Just ... Does this mean we’re dating now?”

“No.” Remus squinted at him as Sirius’ face fell into something mortified and angry. “You kept me waiting, I’ll keep you waiting. We’ll start dating next week.”

A slow, brilliant smile broke over Sirius’ face. He wriggled closer, gingerly dancing his fingers across Remus’ leg. “Seems fair,” he agreed. “But I’m going to kiss you now anyway, okay?”

“If you must,” Remus said stoically, but he couldn’t keep the smile from his mouth.

Sirius wrapped a hand around Remus’ neck and eased him closer then slowly dragged him into a tender, drowning kiss.

Everything faded except the feel of Sirius shifting against him, the warmth of his tongue, the slide of his lips as they tracked along his jaw. It was easy, far too easy, to fall into Sirius and lose himself to the encouraging curve of his mouth, a touch that was somehow patient and insistent all at once, a kiss that consumed and nourished.

The train shook and stopped and juddered onwards again.

“Moony,” Sirius whispered, pulling away and nipping his skin.

“Mhm?” Remus didn’t much care what Sirius was going to say. Someone could have just mugged him and he didn’t think it would shake the golden mist hovering in his brain.

“You just missed your stop. You’re going to have to come home with me.”

“Hm,” Remus murmured, brushing his nose against Sirius’ ear. “I don’t know about that. I can always get off at the next stop and double back.”

“Or you can keep going and get off with me,” Sirius said. Remus could hear his grin.

“You’re embarrassing yourself,” Remus answered, curling a hand through Sirius’ hair and giving it a careful tug.

Sirius gasped. “Totally worth it. Let’s skip ahead to next week, Moony.”

One lip caught between his teeth, Sirius pulled back and just looked at him. But that look, just, _gods that look_... Remus couldn’t say no.


End file.
